• Nao Hagiwara, Courtney J Alderson, and Briana Mezuk.
• Department of Psychology, Virginia Commonwealth University, Richmond, Virginia.
• Ethnic Dis. 2016 Jul 21; 26 (3): 453-60.

ObjectiveRacial/ethnic minorities in the United States not only experience discrimination personally but also witness or hear about fellow in-group members experiencing discrimination (ie, group-level discrimination). The objective of our study was to examine whether the effects of group-level discrimination on mental and physical health are different from those of personal-level discrimination among Black Americans by drawing upon social psychology research of the Personal/Group Discrimination Discrepancy.Design And SettingWe conducted a secondary analysis of cross-sectional survey data from a larger study.ParticipantsOne hundred and twenty participants, who self-identified as Black/African Americans during the laboratory sessions (57.5% women, mean age = 48.97, standard deviation = 8.58) in the parent study, were included in our analyses.Main Predictor MeasuresPerceived personal-level discrimination was assessed with five items that were taken from two existing measures, and group-level racial discrimination was assessed with three items.Main Outcome MeasuresSelf-reported physical and mental health were assessed with a modified version of SF-8.ResultsPerceived personal-level racial discrimination was associated with worse mental health. In contrast, perceived group-level racial discrimination was associated with better mental as well as physical health.ConclusionsPerceived group-level racial discrimination may serve as one of several health protective factors even when individuals perceive personal-level racial discrimination. The present findings demonstrate the importance of examining both personal- and group-level experiences of racial discrimination as they independently relate to health outcomes for Black Americans.

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